One of two international recruits the Gophers men’s basketball team was counting on this season has been denied admission by the University of Minnesota.

Gaston Diedhiou, a 6-9 forward and native of Senegal who played at a high school in the Canary Islands last year, passed the NCAA Clearinghouse — typically the major academic hurdle — as a full qualifier earlier this summer, but he was denied by the school’s office of admissions, which deemed him unprepared for academic success at Minnesota, according to multiple university officials.

Those sources told the Star Tribune that Diedhiou’s English proficiency test scores were cited as the major concern. Minnesota does not have any thresholds for proficiency test scores set in stone, director of admissions Rachelle Hernandez said, but the results are considered as part of a holistic review done for every applicant. After being advised by other members of the department, Hernandez ultimately makes the decision whether to admit the prospective student.

“Our assessment is really related to can the student be successful academically and can they be successful in an English-speaking setting,” Hernandez said, speaking generally about the admissions process. “Admissions decisions are never based on just one thing.”

Bakary Konate, Minnesota’s other foreign recruit, has been fully admitted and is eligible, but that admissions process, too, was far from smooth, according to sources. The 6-11 Mali native, a shot-blocker who is also developing an outside shot, is expected to see playing time as a true freshman this fall.

Diedhiou can retake the proficiency test — Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) — before next semester and could be admitted to school and be granted eligibility to play at that time. In the meantime, Diedhiou, who is expected to arrive on campus yet this week, will participate in an English-intensive program on campus as a non-student — which is not covered by his pending scholarship — this fall.